Supercharge your brain, and your body!

So all my articles so far have focused, for the most part, on improving your body.  How about your mind?  Can we figure out a way to improve that too?  What if we improve our mental strength, foster positive thinking and living fully, then in turn improve our self control and willpower in all aspects of our lives?  What if by doing so allows us to be more motivated and leads to making better decisions in the gym and in the kitchen?  Let's find out.

Form a new positive habit:   
This is something that I find really interesting because it can be so easy and have a profound impact on our lives. If you develop a new, positive habit, any habit, it has been shown to essentially be the equivalent of a workout for your brain, making it stronger and more resilient.  Two studies done in 2006, seen here, show that basically anything where you exhibit positive self-control has been linked to overall improved brain function, goal-setting and attaining those goals.  Something as little as making your bed every morning, a new meditation practice(which has many of its own intrinsic benefits), studying and especially exercise!

Learn a new skill or hobby: 
Through the use of mental acuity games and/or the acquisition of a new skill, they have watched the adult brain growing and improving with fMRI.  The brain is not a static organ, it is dynamic and has the innate ability to grow and change at any age, a process called neural plasticity.  A few suggestions to try are: Chess, soduku, crosswords, learn a new language, study a subject with which you are unfamiliar  or learn to play a new instrument.  It only takes 15 minutes a day!  The more challenging it is, the better.  The worse you are at it, the more awkward or embarrassing it is, the BETTER it is for your brain.  This will help recruit unused parts of your mind, thus creating more complex and efficient neural connections. For a fun way to learn how to play almost any guitar song with only 4 chords check out axis of awesome.  This also has a nice interplay with the first tip, as they will typically go hand in hand.  That is, if you decide to learn a new skill or hobby, and stick to it and form a new habit, you reap double the mental rewards!

Change what you eat:  
There is a huge connection between what you eat and how well you think.  There are numerous studies that show how gluten primarily, and more specifically gliadins, overly processed foods and hydrogenated oils lead to a leaky gut.  Check out leaky gut syndrome on wikipedia here for a description of what it is, as I am too lazy to type it out and hey, who can argue with wiki... right?  I want people to read up on leaky gut if they are unfamiliar with it because I truly believe the inflammatory response, and precipitating immune response, is a very serious detriment to both our physical and mental health.   There are many studies available on a myriad of negative effects that this can cause, a huge list of studies and outcomes can be seen here for those interested.  If I could get people to make just ONE change to their diet, it would be to avoid gluten.  At least to try pulling it from their diet for 30 days and see how they feel; I can almost guarantee it will be a hell of a lot better.   But look, its really quite easy, the best way to supercharge your brain through nutrition is to just eat whole, real foods, NOT food products.  Does it come in a can or a box with a list of ingredients that look like a dictionary and in which you need a dictionary to understand?  They probably aren't your best bet.  Eat lots of vegetables, some fruit, good quality animal protein.  Add in some unprocessed starches(IE root vegetables or white rice) if you aren't overweight, tolerate them well and engage in moderate to intense physical activity.  Also, I don't recommend many supplements but a good fish oil containing high DHA and EPA and a quality liquid vitamin D are highly beneficial in gut health, but more importantly, overall health.

On a final note as to the importance of taking care of our gut is the role of neurotransmitters, the chemicals that regulate our mood, like dopamine, acetylcholine and serotonin.  Did you know that up to 90% of them are actually produced in our gut?  So you can either become a heroine addict to get that dopamine boost, or start taking care of yourself...  Hopefully Kieth Richards isn't reading this.  
Check out a really informative podcast from Chris Kresser on the gut-brain connection if you are interested to learn more.   Again, to make it super simple remember to JERF: Just Eat Real Food.  

Relax:
Take a break from work if you've reached a roadblock, just get up and go for a short 10 minute stroll around the office or better yet, outside in nature.  Develop a regular meditation, prayer or spiritual practice.  Meditation, or prayer practice, has been shown to increase theta and alpha wave activity, which are both associated with relaxed attention.  A stress free focus.  

Make an attempt to lower your cortisol, the stress hormone!  Meditation will help with this as well, but so will a positive outlook on life.  I don't mean to try and push sadness or frustration aside and pretend it doesn't exist, but instead accept it, make a choice to see a positive in it.  Learn something from every situation and view it as a challenge to overcome.  You control your life circumstances; the circumstances of your life do not control you. Also, try turning off all blue light producing devices(yes that includes your iPhones) at least 30 minutes before bed and try keeping a gratitude journal in which, before you go to sleep, write out a list of 5 things you are thankful for that day.  They don't have to be winning the lottery, it can be someone holding a door open for you, a compliment about your shoes, literally ANYTHING.  Speaking of bed, most importantly, GET ENOUGH SLEEP!  This is the most restorative thing you can do for yourself.  Get at least 7 hours of sleep a night, preferably upwards of 9.

All of these things together can improve motivation, productivity, decision making and willpower.  So, how does all of this relate to fitness?  Well, if you improve your overall well being it is reasonable to assume that you will make better choices about diet and sticking to that exercise routine you keep putting off.   The great thing about exercise is that it in and of itself stimulates neurotransmitter production and has the same effect of any other positive habit on your brain.  So where is a good place to start?  Get up off your ass and go lift something.  

Let me know how changing your habits, diet or lifestyle has affected other aspects of your lives!   

 

Hey everyone, I know it's been a week since my last post and I feel really, really bad.  Ok, so not that bad, but I do want to write a lot more frequently.  Just getting into the swing of this blog thing.

I just want to do a simple post today.  A few unwritten etiquette practices for anyone going to the gym for the first time and feeling a little uncomfortable.  Hopefully these can make you feel a little less self-conscious, because let's face it, going to the gym for lots of people is hard enough without worrying about doing something "wrong".  Also a lot of people just have no idea because no one has told them these esoteric set of "rules".  Use them or not, that's up to you.  But you may suffer some evil glares if you choose to ignore them.  You have been warned.

1.  This one is pretty basic, but you would be surprised by the amount of people who seem to forget.  Take the weights off any plate loaded piece of equipment and put any dumbbells back where you got them from.  If you are strong enough to use them, you are strong enough to put them back where they belong.  This ties into my next tip.

2.  If you see weights on a barbell or machine, it usually means someone is using it.  Wait a few minutes to see if someone comes back or ask someone in the area if they have seen anyone on it.  This is also another reason to put your weights away.  A non-verbal message to let other gym goers know you are finished.  Also, as a side note, if it looks like you just had a bath on the bench/equipment; wipe it down.

3.  Another one is don't grab a set of dumbbells and then stand RIGHT in front of the rack where you got them.  That really annoys people and it's just plain inconsiderate.  Move at least 5 feet back.

4.  Don't walk in front of the mirror if someone is clearly using it.  I don't really recommend relying on a mirror to know if you are doing an exercise correctly or not, but nonetheless it can be dangerous and aggravating to the person lifting.  Using a mirror is fine to check your form or depth but there is something called proprioception which is essentially the awareness of your own body in a spatial domain.  So it is a good idea to try and develop that as you get more advanced.

5.  Don't be afraid to ask someone for help on how to use a machine or even do an exercise properly.  The guy with his headphones in and smashing his head off the barbell is probably not the guy to ask.  Most people, however, don't mind answering a question or two.  Also, don't ask someone as they are in the bottom position of a squat... that may be slightly distracting.

6.  Be safe and have fun.  These things aren't something to really focus on, just be aware of and hopefully make you a little more comfortable around the gym.  As a final thought about being safe, please don't do this exercise or anything that looks remotely similar.

Thanks guys and leave a comment about things that have made you squirm a little bit at the gym or a question you have about anything gym related really.  Bye for now!

Salmon for dinner, mercury toxicity for desert? (part 2)

This post will be a brief nutritional breakdown of the dinner I had a few nights ago.  I think for my next few posts I'll be going over a few more fundamental things about macro nutrients (fats, carbohydrate and protein) and what effect they have on your body and your health.  So with that out of the way, lets get this show on the road.

Starting with the pumpkin, it's chock-full of B vitamins, vitamin C, super high in vitamin A, magnesium, potassium, soluble fiber, low glycemic starches, and the seeds contain one of the highest natural sources of zinc.  Who knew pumpkins were so good for you and NOT just for carving at Halloween.  Throw some pastured butter on top and you have some healthy fats, more vitamin A and some vitamin K2.
 
As for the kale, as many of you know, it has a LOT of antioxidants and amazing anti-inflammatory properties that aid in a variety of disease prevention.  It has a lot of the same micro nutrients (vitamins and minerals) as pumpkin with a lot more vitamin K.  Kale is rated as one of the most nutrient dense foods because of its low caloric content and high nutrient value.  Making kale chips in either melted coconut oil or olive oil is another source of healthy fats.  Many of the vitamins you get from veggies are fat soluble, which means you actually NEED fat in order for your body to absorb them.  So when you order your next salad, make sure to NOT avoid the full fat dressing. 
The salmon in the meal is a great source of omega-3 fatty acids and a very well absorbed form of vitamin D.  Our bodies need Vitamin D for almost every cellular function in the body and thus for those cultures living in a place of little sunlight, eating cold water fish is a very effective way to keep vitamin D levels up.

Now I wanted to share a bit of information I myself just learned.  I was listening to the weekly podcast from Chris Kresser about mercury toxicity from eating fish.  I'll try and keep it fairly simple and understandable.  Firstly, mercury itself doesn't cause so much direct damage to your body, but remember all those anti-oxidants in the meal above? Well for your body to make use of anti-oxidants (which help prevent or reverse damage from various oxygen related processes) it needs enzymes from selenium.  Therein lies the problem with mercury, it binds to the selenium so there is none available to help your body make use of those beneficial anti-oxidants you guys are eating, right?.  Fish is pretty high in mercury so that must mean then, that you shouldn't eat fish, right?  Not so fast.  Ocean fish, and most fresh water fish, actually have much more selenium than mercury, thus providing more than enough selenium for the mercury's use while leaving plenty for your body to use for the assimilation of anti-oxidants.  The good news for us is that most fish you find in your local grocery store or market has more selenium than mercury.  So believe me, the benefits of eating fish FAR outweigh any negatives.  There is a great documentary about 20 minutes long, from the University of North Dakota, that does a great job of explaining in more detail if anyone is interested.  It can be found by clicking here.  So basically I am saying, stop reading this and go eat some fish.. 2-3 times a week at least. 

 All the best,

Matt

Hello, World!

Hey everyone out there in internet land, my name is Matt Thatcher, a personal trainer located near Toronto, Ontario, Canada and I am attempting to finally start my own health and fitness blog (as I'm sure you have guessed if you are reading this).  My family and friends have been telling me for quite some time now that I should get this show on the road and share my passion with as many people as possible.  However, I not so secretly believe that they are actually just sick and tired of listening to me talk about the latest research on nutrition or the next physical goal I am attempting to achieve.  So now, hopefully, you will all be my willing audience.  I really hope I can share some insightful information and help people no matter where they are on their own personal journey; from the beginner who thinks a calorie is a planet in another galaxy, to the advanced athlete who wants to squeeze out that last 1% of performance.

I want to keep this first post fairly simple, just like my training and nutrition philosophies.  I believe that living a healthy lifestyle doesn't have to be complicated at all.  In fact, I believe it has to be simple and straightforward for long term success.  You don't need fancy equipment or special powders and pills.  The message I want to send isn't fancy, it is just to eat real food, move heavy things in a safe and effective way (even our body is pretty heavy so move that!) and take care of stress in our lives.  I know that may sound too easy, but in today's society it is equally easy to be stressed and confused as to just what exactly real food is and what exactly the best method of working out is.  While I believe there is no one "BEST" method for everyone, I do believe certain principles are the best starting point for almost everyone.  I myself follow a Paleo lifestyle and have never felt or looked better.  Do not confuse this way of eating with a focus on eating low carb or Atkins, to put it simple, Paleo is a way of eating that shifts the focus to consuming the most nutrient dense food that YOUR body assimilates the most effectively.  

I wanted to keep this first post short and sweet.  Nothing I do is too sweet, and this isn't that short. I have some ADD issues so that probably doesn't help the situation any.  Don't judge me as I run off on a tangent in my first post.  I will now attempt to bring this back to health.  There are just so many ideas, topics and information to discuss and I assure you future posts will be more pointed and specific... I hope.  Future posts will include tips and information on workouts and exercise, nutrition and recipes and various other lifestyle factors that relate to health.  For now I will leave you with a few sources of my own inspirations and people that I look up to in the industry.  Some of my favorite health and fitness blogs that I get a lot of my information and inspiration from include Robb Wolf, Charles Poliquin and MarksDailyApple.

I'm really looking forward to sharing my wealth of information on health and fitness as I continue to always learn and evolve myself.  Hopefully you guys can help me continually improve and learn new information as I want to encourage you to leave a comment or question and I'll do my best to answer it. 

Looking forward to hearing your feedback! 

Matt.

Typical day: Log clean and press at a local strongman competition.